When You Are the Help Practical Ideas for Cleaning Your Home

What type of cleaner are you?

How do you leave your bed in the morning? A. Leave it just as it is -- why straighten it -- I’m just going to mess it up again tonight. B. Covers pulled up slightly -- after all we don’t want be too messy C. Usually made, but not magazine beautiful D. Made up -- complete with hospital corners and decorator pillows. It’s so tight you could bounce a quarter off of it.

How often do you change your bed linens? A.Are you supposed to change them? B.Once every 6 months or so, whether they need it or not. C.Every couple of weeks, or when they smell a little funny. D.At least once a week.

Which best describes your dishes and your kitchen sink? A.Dishes, who uses dishes? B.Dishes are washed only when we run out of clean dishes. C.Sometimes the sink is full of dirty dishes,but dishes are usually cleaned each day or so. D.Dishes are washed, dried, and put away after each meal.

Which best describes the state of your bathroom? A.Don’t mind that orange colored growth on the shower floor -- it adds color to the room... B.The toilets are cleaned once a month or so, whether they need it or not. C.Usually don’t let the toothpaste sit on the mirror too long before cleaning. D.Wipe down bathtub, shower, walls and sink after every use.

What type of cleaner are you? Mostly A’s -- housekeeping likely ranks very low on your list of priorities. Mostly B’s and C’s -- you likely lead a busy life and while important and/or necessary, cleaning isn’t the highest item on your priority list Mostly D’s -- you place a high priority on cleaning

Why clean? A clean home is a healthier home. –Disease-causing microorganisms A clean home is a safer home. –Excessive debris

Why do we suffer from housework burnout? Because... housework can be: Repetitious and Monotonous Never ending Low on positive feedback Hard work

Deciding What’s Right for You! Research suggests: Neatness traits come from modeling Couples often disagree about cleaning issues

Overcoming Housework Burnout Three underlying reasons we experience housework burnout: Stress Inadequate time No help from others

Finding the Time to Clean Determine your standard of clean Prepare a cleaning schedule Do a little each day

Find the best and fastest way to get the job done Use efficient cleaning methods and tools Make use of free moments Try doing two things at once Finding the Time to Clean

Getting Help From Others Women spend more time on housework than do men hours/week compared to 3.9 hours/week Married women spend 14 hours more on housework each week than do their single counterparts; married men spend only 90 minutes more than do single men. And what about the children?

Practical Ways to Get Help From Others Prepare a list of all chores. Each family member should take responsibility.

Have each family member select one or two chores that they will be responsible for completing every week. Have young children work together on their chores with an adult. Practical Ways to Get Help From Others

Hire part-time help to help with specific chores if keeping up becomes overwhelming. Practical Ways to Get Help From Others

Finding and Maintaining Your Balance

For more information please refer to the When You Are the Help newsletter on your mini-CD